Sunday, January 19, 2020

CollaboDungeon 01!

An idea that came to me while walking my pooches just now. A dungeon and collaboration between all of us to to make something, just for fun. The CollaboDungeon!

I post a new map, you blokes and I turn it into an adventure.

Those who contribute are free to use the map (and any text they write) for whatever reason they want: post on their blog, write and sell a full adventure on Drive thru, put on a t-shirt, or print out a poster.

With that out of the way, I give you, CollaboDungeon #1!

A quick note, there is no 'ownership of a room' so even if someone else already has fleshed out room 7 but you have a great idea for it, post it! The idea is that we do not end up with a definitive dungeon, but instead a decent map (least I hope so) and tons of cool, fun, and creative ideas that any DM could grab and use.

Legalese: Matt Jackson allows free and unrestricted use, with attribution, of the above images even in commercial usage so long as they contribute to the CollaboDungeon effort by posting their creative work in the comments to this post, or link to them in the comments. "Their creative work" means you make up something for this dungeon. Failing to comply with the sharing of creative work will release Godzilla's wrath upon thee.

50 comments:

Room 9: Two Enter Only One LeavesThe door swings open easily into this room. But as soon as two enter the door slams shut and magically seals itself. At this time the four statues in the corners of the room animate, they are humanoid in form, but featureless and their hands end in blades. At the same time, two rectangular sections of the floor illuminate. The statues don't attack, but take up places around the raised platform. The players could refuse to take their position on the floor, but the magic and statues have no where else to go and they don't have to eat. If the PCs take positions on the illuminated sections of the floor a loud gong noise echoes through the entire dungeon. At this time if the PCs try to move off the platform the statue will attack until the PC returns to the platform. A death is required for the door to open.

East wall – holds a man-sized circular plate. The top half of the plate is polished brass and the bottom half has been coated in black enamel. In the middle of the plate is a rotatable arm. At the end of the arm is a small brass Sun sculpture that has a small pivoting cup behind it. The cup has traces of wax in it. The arm can be rotated 360 degrees, such that the Sun can be positioned anywhere around the circumference of the plate.

West wall – is painted black showing the Stella constellations. In the middle of the wall is a perfect sphere about a foot in diameter. Half of the sphere is inside the wall and the other half protrudes into the corridor. The sphere can be spun, and if spun it can be seen that half the sphere is white and the rest black.

Solution - a small lit candle must be place in the cup of the Sun arm and the ‘dial’ moved to the correct time of day (straight up is noon and straight down is midnight). The Moon sculpture must be rotated to show the present phase of the Moon (e.g. if the Moon is presently a Full Moon, the half sphere in the corridor must be rotated to show all white). The secret door will then open. The door will lock again when any of the above conditions cease to apply, e.g. the candle goes out or the time of day changes. The door has no opening mechanism on the inside.

There are two women, twins, in the pit. They are identical in all ways save one. One women wears a lead ring. When they become aware of the characters, they will both shout out for help. When the characters look in the pit, they will hear the following orders:

Twin with the ring: "Kill her! She's a demon!" Twin without the ring: "Kill her! She's an idiot!"

They are both at the bottom of the pit and represent no threat to the characters in this state. They are both bloodied and bruised from the fall and each has a blacken right eye.

If the party rescues them, they will find out the following information. Twin One, the one with the ring is named Meredith. She entered the dungeon with her friends in search of treasure. She found a gold ring in area 8 and after discerning no purpose to it, put it on. She was pushed by a monster into the pit.

Twin Two, without the ring, was a doppelganger hiding in area 8. To take on Meredith's form, she ambushed her by pushing her into the pit. Unfortunately for the monster, Meredith grabbed it's wrist as she fell and both ended up at the bottom. As the doppelganger took her form, Meredith shouted "Begone!" which the ring of wishes interpreted as a command against the monster. Since the doppelganger was in mid-transformation into Meredith, the ring fixed it in that form before turning to lead. The doppelganger is now an exact copy of Meredith.

The twins have found combat against each to be profoundly lethal, as they mirror each other's moves perfectly, hence the matching black eyes. They will not fight each other. They will join the party to escape the dungeon.

As you enter the room, you notice heavy curtains that are drawn to the right and left of the main room. There is a stone altar at the rear of the room. Upon it sits a stone statue of a humanoid dog-like creature approximately 18 inches high. The lower body is that of human legs and the upper torso chest also. The head is that of some canine with an elongated head.

Looking behind the right curtain (facing the altar) on will find a large and heavy stone bowl on the floor. It is empty. Pouring any form of blessed or holy water into it will activate the dog statue's voice which calls out “ You are one of the blessed of Ranzeer, tidings will favor you this day”

Behind the left curtain, there is a similar bowl much like the other side. However, this bowl is full of clear and refreshing water. Removal of any amount of this water will activate the dog statue which will come to life in a medium-sized body and attack. It will bellow out “ You thief of the dark, today only doom favors you from the great Ranzeer's justice”.

Any removal of the actual statue turns the room pitch-dark for one turn. No normal or magical light source will penetrate the dark. A cold chill comes over the characters, but no other effects occur.

GM Note: Adjudication to the good effects allowed and stats for the creature are left to the GM for the appropriate adventure scenario.

Room 6: Two brilliant chandeliers slowly rotate, suspended in 20 feet in the air with no visible means of support. Their light is nearly blinding to anyone entering the room. The blessed light from the chandeliers prevents any undead from entering the room. If explorers can reach the chandeliers, they will be able to successfully pry off 1d10 illuminated crystals from each. The crystals may turn undead as a 1st level cleric. If thrown, they will explode in a blast of scintillating light, causing 2d4 dmg (5'radius) as a magic weapon. Undead caught in the blast must save of be slowed for 1d4 rounds.6a. Frescoes and bas reliefs line the walls, depicting a fabled priest shattering a horde of undead in some forgotten war. 6b. Decorated as 6a. A false door scrawled with 'You will not find passage here' is in the center of the east wall. Anyone attempting to open the door will take 1d6+1 electrical damage.

Great idea! I was eagerly waiting to see what someone comes up with for room 6. I purposefully put weird looking 'blobs' in there and the weird side passages to see what others might come up. Love the chandeliers and crystals!

It would be neat if the 4 x plates in room 5 are linked to the 4 x blob chambers in room 6 - e.g. if you step on the north west plate you are teleported into north west blob chamber and locked in a force field. You can be freed if ... ??? Something else is placed on NW plate. Meanwhile the zapper statue reactivates each time a plate is touched.

Sir Nudford Fontleroy (Living Statue)Sir Nudford animates when chariot is touched. Demands to know who disturbs his chamber. Challenges PCs to recite their glorious deeds in life. If satisfied with answers, he praises PCs but demands his chariot be ridden into battle one last time … or they will die by his hand!

Those map(s) are great looking! These ideas are great, as is the overall idea. I'd say I'm bookmarking to provide an idea, but likely just to steal them. :D Glad there was a link from Goblin's Henchman to here. Thank you!

Thanks, glad you like them. I have had a great response for this first map, so I will being doing another one. I figure if nothing else people will get a decent map to use in their games or tons of creative ideas!

A large sphere, at least 10 feet in diameter, rests in a shallow depression, as if perhaps it had been dropped there. The sphere appears to made of red-veined marble that has been encased in a clear substance, maybe glass. Cracks criss-cross the glass, if that is what it is. A piece the size of a melon has been gouged from the sphere.

When any living creature at least the size of a halfling approaches within 20 feet of the sphere, it swivels rapidly in place, revealing its top portion, which almost exactly resembles the iris and pupil of an enormous eyeball. The crack'd eye can detect invisible, out of phase, and ethereal creatures. The eye swivels, seeming to track an appropriately sized creature moving within a 20-foot radius. If more than one such creatures moves at a time, the eye follows the closest.

Within 5 feet of the eye, a creature looking into its pupil sees the shadowy image of a landing atop a flight of stairs descending into darkness. If the creature touches the surface of the pupil, it must make a saving throw or be teleported to northernmost part of area 2.

7a: A square room with one real door, two false doors, and a fourth "door' that is actually a mimic. The secret door in the southeast corner (accessed by inserting fingers into three holes in the false masonry and sliding the panel) is a broom closet.

Sounds good, this is a fairly small dungeon so probably shouldn't be too large of list, you think?

Side note: CollaboDungeon02 is drawn and being hatched out this week. I am thinking of posting it Sunday morning. Thank you all for participating in this, it has been fun reading everything you came up with.

Absolutely fantastic! Great job. Remember, by posting your ideas here, you are free to take the map (with attribution) and create a product you sell. I could easily see your adventure being worked up with some art and layout and being for sale on Drivethru.

I’m impressed by everyone’s creativity. Couldn’t for the life of me think of anything that seemed to rate, but having seen that people have included items of treasure, I submit this for either late inclusion, or to hold over for attempt number 2.

Box of Holding. It is a box made of various woods, some stained, and the whole thing lacquered. It is 6” x 6” x 3” high. Nothing fancy except the pieces of wood, of various sizes, all joined together somehow to make a box with a hinged lid.

The hinge is some dark metal stronger than iron. There is a lock to fasten, a combo lock with three dials. If you dial 999 it locks, the process being completed by randomizing the dials. To unlock, dial 999, then 000. If you open, dial another number (e.g. 123), and put something that fits completely and snugly inside the box and close it, that item is now ‘somewhere’. To complete the process, dial 999 and randomize. The box is locked. If you dial 999, then 000, then that other number (e.g. 123), you get your item back. If this is a bit too powerful, then only allow 30 slots, i.e. you can only dial on one dial to store an item. Or, just de-couple the number of slots from the dials, e.g. make it 6 - and you’ve just got 6 saved items with 3 digit passwords to access.

It could be found anywhere. It could contain, for example, 1. A map of this dungeon showing secret doors. If you use this rather nice map as a basis, it could show you the connecting way to the hidden level/rooms.2. A key.3. A set of lockpicks.4. A ‘bad penny’. It could be any denomination. It will eventually find its way back to you if you give it to someone. It will then, if held and meditated on, inform you via images and waking day dreams of where it has been and what has happened there. I’m thinking it needs a downside to balance this, but haven’t thought of a good one yet.5. A pouch of lozenges that, if sucked, cure one wound (so, you’d have to record all damage done from each source) inflicted by touch - so claws, a weapon, a spell that was inflicted by touching. Not magic missile or lightning or fireball.6. Something that you lost, otherwise empty. If you put something in there, it becomes lost. If you leave a found item in there (in slot 6) it becomes lost.

In this case, I think maybe a suble pattern on the front with 6 creatures or 6 patterns that can be ‘pressed in’ to select the slot, and then you do the password thing.

Sorry, this is a bit rambly. Haven’t had a good night’s sleep so hopefully the above is coherent enough to be of use.

omg I love it. I also like the idea that this is not a 'new' device, so others might have stored items in it previously. If you happen to stumble upon their random number, you recall the item they stored.

Also, your comment "that item is now ‘somewhere’" got me thinking. What if the item is not stored away in some secure pocket dimension? What it if just randomly goes somewhere....e.g. someplace in the multiverse. So when you reach in and pull out that dagger...what if Lady Sarabeena is carrying it, unaware that it is 'on loan' from the box. What if she wants it back???

I actually laughed out loud when I read that. People at the cafe I’m in didn’t mind, it was noisy anyway. I hadn’t thought of that angle at all. That could be a great start to a scenario, like pulling on a thread that unravels a jumper or something.